The Remedy
by a-sleepingdragon
Summary: In the dark of the night Hermione struggles to deal with the aftermath of the war. Fred promises to help her through it in his own way.


Fred was woken up by the soft whimpering and fidgeting of the body lying next to him in bed. Soon, he knew, the whimpering would turn into loud cries of distress and the fidgeting would become violent thrashing. This had become an almost nightly routine for him in the past year, one that was far too common in wizarding households since the end of the war.

Ever since he and Hermione had started dating this had become a familiar routine for them. She would thrash and cry and scream against an invisible enemy that was long gone but still haunted her dreams. The remnants of a war they had been too young to fight. In their own way, they were all still dealing with the trauma inflicted upon them, each in their own way. Even four years later when they hardly spoke about it anymore, it still managed to haunt their nights and sometimes even days.

George had hardly left his side the first year after the war, too afraid he might lose him. He now insisted on being made aware of his whereabouts every time they were away from each other. If Fred didn't send him a note or a Patronus saying he was fine, George would worry that something terrible had happened to his twin. More often than not he would frantically Apparate around places Fred would likely be, looking for him. His mum had suffered a deep depression after Percy's death. She had come out of it but birthdays and Christmas were always hard on her. She would lock herself in her room and refuse to talk to anyone. She blamed herself a lot for what had happened. Saying that if only she gone after him after he left this wouldn't have happened. For three years she hadn't spoken to him when he was alive and now she never would. Every winter she would knit him his sweater and keep it under the Christmas tree. It broke all of their hearts but they didn't have it in them to tell her to stop. Harry would go through episodes of intense panic and fear every time he had a particularly bad migraine, insisting that everyone take cover and be on their guard just in case Voldemort was back. Fred himself would wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat reliving the moment when the wall came tumbling down on him but instead of being knocked out he remained conscious. Buried alive. He could no longer be in confined spaces without the rising fear that something was going to fall on him and he would be trapped under it. They had all gone to seek help. Some received treatment and care that helped them on their road to recovery but some scars were so deeply etched into your subconscious that no remedy, not even magic could help. Hermione was one of these people. She had been given a prescription for Dreamless Sleep Potion but after having taken it for a while had refused to do so anymore. Even though the potion helped her, she refused as a matter of principle to become dependent on it.

Hermione stirred against him and a sob escaped from her lips. Turning around in bed Fred took hold of her waist and pulled her against him so that her back was up against his chest. Her body tensed at the touch and then jerked violently. Once, twice, a third time but Fred braced himself and only held onto her tighter. He whispered soothing words into her ear until her body started to relax and she started to wake. He gently brushed the hairs around her face away before running his fingers through her wild curls.

Hermione's eyes fluttered opened as she analysed was happening around her. "I had another nightmare didn't I," she said more as a statement than an actual question. Fred hummed in approval and moving a few strands of her hair that were caught in the strap of her top, kissed her on the juncture of her neck and shoulder. Turning around to face him, Hermione nuzzled herself against his chest inhaling the scent that was innately his. "I'm tired of having these nightmares, Fred," she sighed. "I'm tired of waking up sore from all the thrashing. I'm tired of being afraid to go to sleep because of what my dreams will bring. I'm tired of feeling like an idiot for having these dreams when I know it's not true. I just want these nightmares to stop just once and for all."

"Why don't you take the Dreamless potion," he ventured, knowing full well she would refuse but tried nonetheless. "It would give you a good night's rest," he murmured in her ear. His hand trailed down to her hip where he started drawing soft circles with the pad of his thumb.

"I don't want a temporary fix," she huffed propping her head up on her arm. "It'll just make it go away for one night. What about the other 364 days. I can't keep taking the Potion for the rest of my life. I won't be addicted to it, I won't," she said vehemently, emphasising her words with a jab to his chest. "I'm just tired of having to deal with this. Isn't it enough that we were a part of a war, now we have to relive it every chance we get. I just want to be able to forget about everything that happened." Placing her hand on his chest, Hermione slowly met Fred's gaze. "Help me forget," she whispered so softly Fred would have almost missed it if he hadn't seen her lips move.

He inhaled deeply, his thought trialling to what she had asked him. Hermione spent every night reliving the most horrible moment of her life. A moment of pure hate directed at her and if he could counteract those hateful memories with ones of unadulterated love, well, Fred would happily spend his lifetime doing so. "For you. Anything," he said, his nose brushing against her cheek.

He rolled over, his body hovering over hers and slowly leaned forward to capture her lips in his. Hermione let out a small mewl of satisfaction, parting her lips to allow Fred entry as she thread her fingers through his hair. Fred's hand glided from her hip up to her breast and cupped the soft mound while simultaneously sucking on her tongue, mimicking moves yet to come. A shiver ran down Hermione's spine as Fred's cold fingers touched her warm flesh and he watched in silent satisfaction as goose bumps covered her skin. Letting go of her lips, he pushed and pulled her top over and head, his hand switching to the other breast while his mouth made his way to the vacated spot, his tongue laving the pebbled bud on her chest. His hand cupped, massaged and even occasionally scraped against her skin. Fred's mouth let go of her breast with a soft pop and leaned to kiss her lips delicately. He rested his chin in the valley of her breast, chest heaving, their eyes locked and he gave her a knowing grin. His hands trailed down her body and his fingers hooked onto the elastic band of her shorts. Lifting himself away from her, Hermione whined at the loss of contact and he smirked at her, before tugging at her shorts and knickers dragging them down her thighs in a slow controlled movement. Never letting his gaze move from hers. That was the thing about Fred, Hermione thought, under all his jokes and playfulness when he looked at her as he did now she couldn't help the butterflies that erupted in her stomach and the way her breath caught in her throat.

With her lower half as bare as her chest, Fred made his way down to her stomach, alternating between peppering delicate kisses and soft nibbles down her taunt stomach. His tongue darted out and swirled around her navel before continuing his journey downward. She tasted like vanilla and cinnamon, a flavour that reminded him of his favourite biscuits at Hogwarts and only made him want to devour her even more. He knelt between her thighs and Hermione hissed when he licked the inside of her thighs. He pulled her down slightly by the back of them before settling in, his tongue finally finding her aching centre. Hermione gasped in pleasure, her eyes rolled shut and her hands grabbed onto the corners of her pillow. As he laved her folds he took hold of one of her legs and threw it over his shoulder. Hermione watched as his shoulder blades bunched under his t-shirt and for a moment, she wished that he taken the time to remove his top. She loved watching the freckles on his body shift along with every movement he made, like tiny little stars in an expanse of water. Just as she made to move to get rid of his t-shirt Fred pressed a firm hand down on her stomach and sucked down on the tiny nub of pleasure making her back lift off the bed and her toes curl into his back. He slid two fingers into her and she cried out in pleasure, her legs starting to shake around him.

"Fred, please! Please!" she moaned, her hands had made their way into his hair and were tugging and pulling at it. Fred groaned against her sending vibrations through her core. His ministrations were sending her over the edge, waves of intense pleasure were flowing through her body. He bit down lightly around her bud and she cried out inpleasure, her entire body spasming.

With a satisfied grin, Fred climbed up her body watching Hermione's chest rise and fall as he took off his t-shirt and chucked off his boxers. Aligning himself with her, her eyes fluttered open and he kissed her gently on the lips before thrusting into her. Hermione hissed in pleasure as his member filled her, her arms winding around his broad back, pulling him closer to her. She hitched her leg around his hip and she felt his thick length sink further into her body. Their bodies settled into a steady rhythm and Fred tease and licked every inch of skin he could reach.

Hermione was whispering his name over and over again like a mantra and he knew that nothing in the world would sound as sweet as his name on her lips. He could tell that she was getting close by the quivering of her body and the breathiness in her voice; as if she had to muster all of her concentration just to keep on saying his name. His hips slammed into hers, once, twice and in one last cry of his name she convulsed under him. Fred followed a second later his whole body tensing like a taunt bow. He watched as a satiated smile spread across her pink tinged cheeks.

Fred rolled back to his side of the bed, pulling Hermione into his arms and against him, her head nestled perfectly under his chin. "Thank you," she whispered nuzzling her nose against his chest while Fred drew circles with the tip of his fingers against her arm, a sigh of contentment escaping her lips.

Fred stayed up, holding Hermione close to him until he was sure she was fast asleep. Brushing away the hairs on her brow that were matted down with sweat he kissed her forehead lightly. "I promise I will do anything to make you feel better. I will be your remedy".


End file.
